My friends and family make fun of my fears. Am I really weird? Why could I be th!
Question: I am afraid of being attacked, killed, and my kids being hurt. I get this rush of fear when I hear something at night. Sometimes, I'll see awful images in my head that scare the crap out of me. It has only affected my life in a way that makes me extra cautious. What could have made me feel this way? I've never had anything really scary happen nor have I known anyone who has. Is this normal? What can I do to not be so afraid?
Answers: I am afraid of being attacked, killed, and my kids being hurt. I get this rush of fear when I hear something at night. Sometimes, I'll see awful images in my head that scare the crap out of me. It has only affected my life in a way that makes me extra cautious. What could have made me feel this way? I've never had anything really scary happen nor have I known anyone who has. Is this normal? What can I do to not be so afraid?
With all the crime and crazy's out there, you have every right to feel the way you do. You are a mother, and it wouldn't be natural if you didn't feel the way you do. With all the sick sick twisted people out there NO one could ever be TOO careful. It is very normal. I am right there with you on the images too. It's not that I am sick and wish it upon the people I love, I think of things that could happen to them or myself, so it makes me become more protective. God is the one you should turn to for help, let him know your worries, and ultimately he will help.
Every ones a bit wierd, but this isn't normal you could be afflicted with a mental disease i suggest seeing a therapist
Time to see a therapist for cognitive therapy.
or
Read a book called "Feel the fear and do it anyways"
Really good book. I read it
i just think your paranoid, i can be too sometimes. maybe your parents are worry warts so you inherited it from them. hmm go to a therapist. face your fears and try calming down
Your fears are not irrational. There are plenty of people, mostly single women, who are afraid to live alone. Let's face it, this isn't exactly a safe world that we live in, so you're right to be worried for your safety as well as your children's. If you want to feel less anxious, take extra precautions to make sure that your home is safe. Have an alarm system installed and have a plan that can be readily practiced with your children and put into action for events such as fires, weather catastrophes, and possible break-ins by burglars. Do a nighly check of all doors and windows and make sure they are locked. Look outside the windows to make sure there's nobody outside or any suspicious activity in the neighborhood. Don't worry about people laughing at you. It's always better to be prepared in case of an emergency rather than just going on thinking that something bad can never happen to you, like most people do.
Anxiety could make u think this way. You have a chemical imbalance and its easily fixed with an anit-anxiety/anti-depressant medication for a short period until it gets ur balances normal again. Good luck! =]
I get this way too. I think a big part of it is being a mom and the paranoia that comes from everything that is on the news and on our tv's. I think it is a form of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder...and I think you don't necessarily have had to experience a traumatic event....just turning on the television and listening to all the news can scare the heck out of you! I think you should get some counseling....it helps!
Sounds as if you have Anxiety going on. You need to do something at all times whether a simple thing or complex- to keep your hands and your mind busy. Also, walk or do exercises just until the point of breaking into a good sweat.
I personally do not believe there is a "normal" for anyone. And if you were normal, you would then desire to be different.
Now, READ PSALMS 91. Read it over and over everyday and as many times as possible to the point that you can say it without even reading it anymore.
You will understand why I tell you to do this once that you have done it.
I hope that you will keep my email address so that one day ahead you will email me with things much greater than you ever expected.
I think being a mom makes us more afraid. I know that I never worried about my safety before I had children. Once you have kids, you have to worry about keeping them safe, and about what would happen to them if something happened to you. It's a lot to have to deal with, on top of the normal mommy fears...the ones about if your kids are growing, eating, behaving, etc. normally...
There are nights that I can't sleep because I keep hearing noises and have to get up and check on them. Someone tried to break in last year and cracked the doorframe. That made it even harder for me to sleep. Part of my problem is that my husband works nights so he's always gone and it's just me and the kids.
Make an emergency plan with your kids. Mine is simple, if they hear anything strange in the night (and it made a lot of noise the time that someone was trying to break down the dor), my daughter who sleeps in my room is to go into the closet and lie down on the floor. My other daughter, who sleeps in her own bedroom, is to go into her bathroom, lock the door, and get into the bathtub. We've practiced it. The other half of my emergency plan is my part...I bought a gun and learned how to use it after the trouble I had last year. It has actually calmed me down a lot, knowing that we're prepared for a possible situation, and wouldn't be defenseless for the probably 10 or 20 minutes it might take the police to arrive.
As far as seeing awful images in your head, is it just a random fear? For example, a fear that your child's bed is too close to the corner of the house, and that someone could accidentally hop the curb, go through the lawn, and crash into the house, harming your child...and then you imagine the disaster and worry about it for a little while...or is it the kind of fear where you become convinced that an object (for example a hammer) is going to hurt your child, and you can't calm down about it until the hammer is outside and the door is locked? If you're worrying about random disasters and bad people, that's normal fears that all parents have from time to time. If you're obsessing over objects, or even checking your door 20 times a night to be sure it's locked, then you need a little bit of medical help...it's nothing to be ashamed of, actually some women develop it as a part of postpartum depression, and it goes away eventually, but it can be treated with medication, and you'd be surprised at how your quality of life improves if you're not spending all of your time obsessing over some particular fear.
Do everything you can to secure your home...
These days you should do all you can with security.
You must think back to when this first developed in your mind.
(If you can remember...was there any thing that was a
crisis-like situation/ event)?
Could you have read one too many scary books/magazines.
Could any scary t.v. programs or movies sparked these
fears and anxieties?
If you absolutely cannot recall ANYTHING THAT WOULD
TRIGGER THESE THOUGHTS...................................
THEN I'D SAY..."Counseling / Therapy may be in order.
No one should make fun of your fears.
You should Face your fears!!!
Take a self-defense course!!! (It can't hurt...and it could
help you to feel more empowered and confident.
What I do to not be afraid is read the Holy Bible...
And pray to the Heavenly Father to help me.
I also meditate on positive sayings from the Bible...
God Didn't Give me the Spirit of Fear,
But of a sound mind.......................................
Whatever is pure, whatever is lovely,..........think on these
things!!!
There is a saying in the mental health field; "if the only tool you have in your kit is a hammer, you tend to treat everything as a nail". So it goes with doctors, and their prescription pads: handy, quick, and convenient, when trying to manage a large list of patients, with very limited time for each.
With anxiolytics (anti-anxiety medication, such as Lexapro, or Paxil, which treat both anxiety and depression) you are only addressing the symptoms, and even then, often only temporarily, as your system becomes used to it, and you have to accept the risks of an increased suicide/homicide rate, aberrant behaviour, and side effects, such as possible sexual dysfunction (common). For those reasons, I recommend first trying the alternatives, which not only treat the symptoms, using herbal remedies, or supplements like inositol, but the cause, as well, using EFT, and relaxation techniques. Theanxiolytics/antidepressants will still be there, should the alternatives prove insufficient for you.
See anxiety treatments, at ezy build (below) in section 6. Set yourself a specific time period for worrying about anything, (say; a half an hour, or an hour, possibly when you get home in the evening, but not too close to bedtime) after which, resolve firmly to refuse to even entertain the thought of worrying again on that day: realise and accept that to do otherwise would be counterproductive to your mental health, and enjoyment of life. You will have had your "worry time" for the day, and can just write down any more thoughts that come to mind, and say to yourself: "Well, I'll just have to worry about that tomorrow, won't I?". Use the technique for reprogramming negative thoughts and internal monologue (self talk), on pages 2, and 2L, to help you in this, if you find yourself backsliding into your former bad habits. Some people carry a wide rubber band in their pocket: put it on their wrist; stretch, and release, as a means of reinforcing it, and speeding up the process, re-pocketing it afterwards, but I regard this as being purely optional.
Practice one of the relaxation methods on pages 2, 11, 2c, or 2i, daily, and when needed. Alternatively, give the EFT a good tryout, to see if it helps you. There is also a version for use in public places, (if you like, you can claim to have a headache, as you massage/lightly tap your temples, but you would then be restricted to subvocalising: saying it to yourself in your mind). Section 53, and pages 2, 2.q and 2.o at http://www.ezy-build.net.nz/~shaneris also refer: "Even though I sometimes suffer from anxiety, I deeply and completely accept myself." Neurofeedback treatment for anxiety is increasingly becoming available. Herbal remedies, such as St.John's wort, arctic root, or Valerian are often effective, but the idea is to use them like water wings, or training wheels on a bicycle, providing initial support, and giving time for other treatments, such as therapy, and relaxation techniques, to take effect. Also see:
http://www.abc.net.au/health/features/st...
You may have social anxiety. I have it and an it has paralyzed my life the same way by fear you mention. It has taken over my mind and like. I'm like a little scared mouse in the corner of my room. Seek out treatment before it takes over your life too. Best wishes.
There's nothing abnormal about what's going on with you.
As someone else answered above; make sure you have good locks....keep your home secure. I live in a good neighborhood but it's a big city, too many people & I also am apprehensive especially at night.
And how can you not have fears when we hear nothing but bad, scary news all the time.
I wish you well.
I get the same rushes of panic, so I'd say you're normal. People who make fun of it either lack the imagination to see what a dangerous world we live in, or are trying to "whistle past the graveyard" if you know the expression.